Madras motorcyclist seriously injured in Hwy. 26 crash
A 72-year-old Madras man who has served as police chief in Warm Springs and Madras was seriously injured Friday on U.S. Highway 26 in Baker County when his motorcycle was struck by an ATV that fell off a truck when a strap came loose, Oregon State Police reported.
OSP and emergency personnel responded around 11:15 a.m. to the reported crash on Highway 26 near milepost 202, troopers said.
A preliminary investigation found that Prairie City man was heading west at the wheel of a Ford F-350 flatbed pickup hauling a Honda ATV when the strap holding the ATV to the truck came loose and the ATV fell off the truck.
The ATV then struck an eastbound Honda motorcycle ridden by Enes Smith of Madras, who was flown by air ambulance to a hospital with serious injuries.
OSP said it was assisted at the crash scene by the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, EMS crews from Unity and Baker City, and ODOT.
Smith served stints as police chief in Warm Springs and Madras, and earlier worked for the Eugene and Springfield police departments, then on a Bend police drug task force and as a Prineville police lieutenant and captain.
He also has taught criminal justice and sociology courses at Central Oregon Community College and is a published author and drag strip racer.
